1950 in British television

This is a list of British television related events from 1950.

Events

23 February – First televised report of general election results in the UK with coverage of the 1950 United Kingdom general election, although the footage is not recorded. Richard Dimbleby hosts the BBC coverage of the election which he will do again for the 1951, 1955, 1959 and the 1964 United Kingdom general elections. On this occasion, Dimbleby is joined in the BBC Lime Grove Studios by R. B. McCallum, Fellow of Pembroke College, Oxford and author of The British General Election of 1945 and David Butler, research student of Nuffield College. The first election night programme runs from 10:45pm until just after 1am.

21 May – The BBC Television Service's Lime Grove Studios in London are opened officially by Violet Attlee, the Prime Minister's wife. These were purchased from Gaumont-British last year as a temporary measure until Television Centre is available.

9 June – For the Children launches the BBC's dedicated children's programming from its Lime Grove Studios.

11 July – Children's marionette series Andy Pandy premieres on the BBC Television Service.

27 August – The first ever live television pictures from across the English Channel are transmitted by the BBC Television Service. The two-hour programme, Calais en fête, is broadcast live from Calais in northern France to mark the centenary of the first message sent by submarine telegraph cable from England to France.

8 September–27 October — No issues of Radio Times are published, due to a printing dispute.
8 September – The first outside broadcast of snooker takes place, at Leicester Square Hall. The balls are numbered with their values.
30 September – First BBC Television Service broadcast from an aircraft.

13 October – George Barnes becomes Director of BBC Television, taking over from Norman Collins.

20 December – Poet T. S. Eliot expresses concerns about "the television habit" in a letter to The Times.
23 December – Gala Variety with Tommy Cooper becomes the first programme of its type to be broadcast by the BBC from its Lime Grove Studios.

A cable network is launched in Gloucester, to provide better television reception than is possible at this time via a rooftop aerial.
The first film made specifically for British television, A Dinner Date With Death, shot in 1949, is premiered, giving rise to an anthology series, "The Man Who Walks by Night".

8 January – Rope
2 February – The Scarlet Pimpernel
5 March – Sunday Night Theatre
6 June – The Admirable Crichton
11 July – Andy Pandy
30 July – Adventure Story
24 November – Pet's Parlour with Petula Clark
12 December – Little Women, drama serial in six parts, starring Norah Gorsen, David Jacobs, Barbara Everest and others
31 December – ''Mr. Pastry's Progress''